MOFTB Hits Productions with Added $300 Fee

The Mayor’s Office of Film, TV and Broadcasting has socked film and TV productions with a new $300 shooting permit fee. The charge comes on top of a $3200 fee that the Department of Citywide Administrative Services started charging last fall to film inside city buildings.

Up until now, no one has had to pay for a permit since the city established a film office in 1966.

Slashes in city budgets, of course, are behind the move. According to MOFTB, the relatively modest amount will go towards costs that city agency faces for budget items such as the processing of permit applications. It’s unclear if enough money will be generated to cover the $155,000 the office has had to trim from its $2 million budget this year.

Julianne Cho, Associate Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Film, Theater and Broadcasting noted that this was the first time MOFTB started charging a fee for any of its services.

That’s still a better deal than shooting in Los Angeles. There you’ll pay $625 for a film permit allowing two weeks of shooting, and face extra fees for parking, street closures and police officers on set. NYC still doesn’t charge for that latter part.

If you are using only hand-held equipment and/or can prove financial hardship, the charge is dropped.